History

Systematic thinking about unintended consequences, the third thing, commenced in the 1700s with the Scottish Enlightenment.

The other Enlightenment, the French, kept the old, personal blame and the top down.

The French Enlightenment loved reason, planning, design, the state.… pic.twitter.com/5eznYj7N2W

— Deirdre Nansen McCloskey (@DeirdreMcClosk) March 16, 2026

 

An Insight

So any attempt at compromise or assimilation is strictly forbidden by Allah

Not a very good starting point for multiculturalism https://t.co/JCRAIsfZUN

— John Cleese (@JohnCleese) March 15, 2026

 

I see wonderful things

Of recent discoveries:

If you are in London, I very much recommend checking this bookshop (near Tufnell Park). It specialises on classics and has a very nice collection of Greek & Roman literature

I've been diving into Gibbon's footnotes and this place is an absolute treasure pic.twitter.com/aI96seGUtm

— Kamil Galeev (@kamilkazani) March 16, 2026

 

Offbeat Humor

alternate timeline:

if sweden had had one more truant officer, germany's industrial sector might have been saved... pic.twitter.com/nd2AO5jhsr

— el gato malo (@boriquagato) March 15, 2026

 

Data Talks

Where, on this chart, is the evidence that Ehrlich's predictions of inevitable, imminent, worsening global famine, starting in the 1960s, were "premature" rather than wrong? https://t.co/juQ1aw6DNY pic.twitter.com/BqjfhS0Z2t

— Matt Ridley (@mattwridley) March 16, 2026

 

Life can be improbably weird sometimes.

Seems odd to me.  

The alleged shooter attempting to assassinate President Trump Saturday night is Cole Tomas Allen, a young black man from California with degrees in Mechanical Engineering and Computer Science who is described by neighbors as being "on the spectrum."  He apparently is from a solidly upper middle class family and has no criminal history.

Cole Tomas Allen  - Black, upper middle class, 31 years old Millennial, no criminal history.  Possibly mildly autistic.  First time crime - attempted assassination of President Trump.  

Just this past December, 2025, there was another arrest, this time for the five-year old mystery of who planted the pipe bombs outside the Democratic National Committee (DNC) and Republican National Committee (RNC) headquarters on January 6, 2021.  

The suspect was Brian Cole, Jr.  

Brian Cole, Jr.  - Black, upper middle class, 30 years old Millennial, no criminal history.  Claimed to be autistic.  First time crime - planting pipe bombs just prior to Congress's certification of President Trump's loss in 2020.  

No conspiracy theory here, just the statistical improbability that there should be two Millennial, black, upper middle class, mildly autistic men named Cole who should choose to commit a first time crime and that that crime should be against President Trump.

Life can be improbably improbable sometimes.

The Island, 2003 by Rick Amor

The Island, 2003 by Rick Amor (Australia, 1948 - ) 

Click to enlarge.

The top 10% of the most prolific elite can be credited with 50% of all contributions.

From Age and outstanding achievement: What do we know after a century of research? by Dean Keith Simonton.

A small percentage of workers is responsible for the bulk of the work...the top 10% of the most prolific elite can be credited with 50% of all contributions, whereas the bottom 50% of least productive workers can claim only 15%...the most productive contributor is about 100 times more prolific than the least.

 

History

Even in Nazi Germany, there were Germans who risked everything to help Jews by hiding them, feeding them, or helping them to escape. We call them Righteous Among the Nations.

In Gaza, during the captivity of our hostages, not a single man or woman stepped forward to help them,… https://t.co/hoYopYqmau

— Shelley Blond (@BlondShelley) March 15, 2026

 

An Insight

"When we are tired, we are attacked by ideas we conquered long ago."

—Friedrich Nietzsche pic.twitter.com/GxTkMSwt3W

— The Knowledge Archivist (@KnowledgeArchiv) March 15, 2026